The Fed is expected to stand pat this week. The big question is for how long?

From msn.com

Federal Reserve officials have signaled clearly that they intend to leave their benchmark interest rate unchanged this week, leaving economists to debate a larger question — how long will the central bank stay on the sidelines? Expectations of quick further cuts are evaporating. The market doesn’t see another move until July. But waiting for six months also dims the prospect of any move. “The longer they wait to cut, the higher the hurdle becomes to justify on economic grounds the need to ease further,” said Sarah House, senior economist at Wells Fargo. While further cuts at some point remain the consensus, a ... (full story)